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| Despite ban in place, cutting of hills goes unabated in North Kashmir | | |  S Tahir-ul Haq
Early Times Report
BARAMULLA, Nov 19: Despite the government ban on hill cutting a group of people including local goons, influential ones and truck owners have been carrying on the business of hill cutting in various parts of this North Kashmir district, posing a threat to ecological balance and environment.
Sources said that a group of unscrupulous people from different sections of society including local goons, truck owners, brick kiln owners and even some concerned government officials are working together in the lucrative business of illegal and rampant hill cutting in various parts including Palhallan, Pattan, Zangam, Sangrama and Kanispora in Baramulla district.
It is very disappointing after seeing scores of JCBs and tippers which were seen busy in soil cutting and ferrying it to other places of the district without any fear in broad day light, sources informed.
"Soil cutting in orchard fields is going on at large scale, resulting in ecological balance in our state. One could imagine that how ecological stability is under big threat as government is not serious to initiate action against the elements with vested interests," said sources.
Sources alleged that the concerned government officials are least bothered about the environment and ecological stability, instead of discouraging these mafias they are acting as mere spectators behind the scene.
Instead of challenging some vested interests or taking stern action against the violators, they are helping them further in the illegal acts of hill cutting, sources complained.
Sources further revealed that over nine to twelve hills had already disappeared completely during the past few years and some innocent people died in landslides caused mainly by hill cutting in the Kashmir valley.
A local resident of Pattan said that soil cutting is not the only issue, but the active land mafias are purchasing these orchard fields rather 'no man's land' on lower rates and later turns the same land into residential colonies and sells them in worth lakhs. The irony is that some private trucks were seen carrying soil during night hours, which clearly shows that it could only happen on the behest of few influential people some labourers have been indulging in the cutting of hillocks in the area and take the soil for sale in private trucks to other districts, said local residents.
Need of the hour is to stop this kind of illegal business, there is already much environmental and ecological disturbance in our state. Instead of favouring some land mafia owners government should take strict action against the corrupt officials, otherwise the day is not for behind when Kashmir hills will lose their glory, beautification and protection from land sliding cases, locals added. |
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